Last Updated on: 4th December 2023, 06:00 pm
Web site: briarproject.org
Category: Network
Subcategory: Instant Messengers, Forums
Platform: Android
License: GPL
Interface: GUI
First release: May 9, 2018
Briar – a messaging app designed for activists, journalists, and anyone else who needs a safe, easy and robust way to communicate. Unlike traditional messaging apps, Briar doesn’t rely on a central server – messages are synchronized directly between the users’ devices. If the internet’s down, Briar can sync via Bluetooth or Wi-Fi, keeping the information flowing in a crisis. If the internet’s up, Briar can sync via the Tor network, protecting users and their relationships from surveillance.
Briar provides private messaging, public forums and blogs that are protected against the following surveillance and censorship threats:
– Metadata surveillance. Briar uses the Tor network to prevent eavesdroppers from learning which users are talking to each other. Each user’s contact list is encrypted and stored on her own device.
– Content surveillance. All communication between devices is encrypted end-to-end, protecting the content from eavesdropping or tampering.
– Content filtering. Briar’s end-to-end encryption prevents keyword filtering, and because of its decentralized design there are no servers to block.
– Takedown orders. Every user who subscribes to a forum keeps a copy of its content, so there’s no single point where a post can be deleted.
– Denial of service attacks. Briar’s forums have no central server to attack, and every subscriber has access to the content even if they’re offline.
– Internet blackouts. Briar can operate over Bluetooth and Wi-Fi to keep information flowing during blackouts.